Ok, I want to start breeding guppies, (for fun, not profit). What do I need to do this.
I will be getting java moss for the fry to hide in. What else do i need?

cindylou

07-07-2009 03:48 PM

guppy fry

Quote:

Originally Posted by rachelrabbit210
(Post 212821)

Ok, I want to start breeding guppies, (for fun, not profit). What do I need to do this.
I will be getting java moss for the fry to hide in. What else do i need?

First of all you will want to get them out and put them in a breeder, the only fish I know of with liebearers that won't eat there babies even when they hide are mollies, the babies might have something to hide in but they don't know to stay there . I have several guppies 5 females and everytime they have babies they are gone within an hour. If you want to save them put the mom in a breeder when she gets ready to give birth and when she is through get her out and put her back in the tank. Hope I was some help.

Oldman47

07-07-2009 06:28 PM

I think all you need besides a generous clump of java moss is time. My wife insisted on getting a few guppies for a tank just for her and I messed up and put some of my java moss in the tank. In 2 weeks the excess fry are going with me to a fish auction because we have so many fry of all sizes, including adult offspring, that there is no room left in the tank. Even with that kind of crowding, there are are lots of fry in the tank that must be less than a week old. I have given up trying to figure out which one will drop next. She has promised to help by picking the couple she wants to keep and the rest will be disappearing to become a donation at the fish club auction.

rachelrabbit210

07-07-2009 08:40 PM

cool thanks :)

MonsiuerPercy1

07-09-2009 07:13 AM

I agree with both of the answers earlier and use both of these methods. I personally prefer buying a breeder only because more of the fry survive. Good Luck.

Guppyluver4ever

07-09-2009 07:34 AM

First, when choosing female guppies, get the biggest and oldest one, these will give you more fry (babies). Then get a 1 Gallon Tank with an airstone, put some gravel in there, some plants,make it cozy. Then when she is square (really fat and bloated), fill your 1 gallon tank with water from your original tank (dont worry this will act as a water change for the original tank, just add some water to the original tank). Now put the female guppy in the 1 gallon (again this is once she is square and acting funny, if you do it too early it will stress her out) and then overnight she will most probably have the babies, and in the morning you take her out and put her back in the original tank, make sure to acllimate her back into the original tank because by this time the temperature will have changed between the 1 gallon and the original. And there you go. The Female Guppy might still be fat, but thats just because she is already working on the next batch. You cant put the fry in the tank with their mom yet, because they will be eaten :(

Some Quick Facts:
-The Pregnancy can last 4-6 Weeks
-You feed the Guppy Fry Crushed Flake Food
-You start to see color in 2-3 Months
-They are fully Grown by 6 Months, by this time, you can finally put the fry back in the adult or original tank.

I have to give credit to the people that helped me and answered my threads because I was New at this too, i followed every thing i listed here and got 18 or 19 (not sure, cant count them all to well because they move) healthy babies. :-)

P.S. They are the cutest things

Oldman47

07-10-2009 09:08 PM

For a guppy, the gestation period is 3 1/2 weeks to about 30 days but once in a while you will have a female that stretches the interval by not becoming pregnant the day after she delivers her fry. A separate birthing tank is a good idea for high survival rates but if you have space for 5 or more gallons of water, you can leave the female in the birth tank long enough to become comfortable before dropping the fry. This is much less stress on the female and means that you don't need to judge perfectly when the female is going to drop in the next 48 hours. If you can establish a cycled filter on that tank, the fry can use it to grow big enough to go back to the main tank.

Shinigami1980

08-07-2009 07:20 PM

can i mix other fry with my guppy fry? actually i found strange looking fry in my tank at first i thought they are guppy fry who escaped the breeder tank. they seemed much smaller but already had signs of redish color. could they be guppy fry? i dont have any other fish that was pregnant.

Santiago

08-08-2009 04:10 AM

yes they might be guppy fry but if you want to increase the number of surviving fry you should get a 10 gllon tank and a sponge filter which they sell on ebay really cheap and then put your fry in there and feed them baby brine shrimp and they will grow much faster and you will have more surviving fry.

Oldman47

08-08-2009 10:24 AM

There are lots of different fry that can be kept together when they are small but you need to worry about which ones will be compatible as they grow older. If all of the adults are working OK together in the main tank, chances are good that the fry will also be OK together as they mature.